Professional BMX Rider Corey Walsh Comes Out As Gay

Professional BMX rider Corey Walsh is publicly opening up about his sexuality! 

The 27-year-old biking competitor and Vans spokesperson took to Instagram this week to pen an emotional post about his journey to self-acceptance and what it was like coming out as a gay man to the people closest to him in his life, especially since there are still not that many out and proud role models in the BMX industry.

"If you were to tell me a year ago that today was going to be the day where I said f*ck it and let the world in on my personal life I would have told you that’s never going to happen," Walsh wrote. "But thanks to the support of my family, friends, and sponsors I can finally accept the fact that I am gay and be open about it."

He continued:

"Trust me, I’m not the person who wants to let people in on my personal life and in a perfect world I would not have to. But the reality is there are a lot of people still struggling with the same situations and I just wanted to let people know that they are not alone. I feel like the world is shifting into a more understanding place and now is the time to open up the conversation within our communities every chance we get. So here we are."

Walsh also opened up about how his good friend and fellow BMX pro Kris Fox was accepting of him when he came out to Fox last summer, and how moved he was by all of it. So much so, Fox even penned an essay for online BMX publication Dig about the experience. 

"I understand the privilege I’ve had with my situation and the reality is a lot of members of the LGTBQ+ community don’t always get positive experiences," Walsh concluded in his Insta post. "So I ask you if you can take anything positive from my situation please be open-minded to anyone struggling with their own journeys. And to anyone out there dealing with the bad days, it does get better. Just take it one day at a time. And if anyone ever needs someone to talk to my DMs are open."

"Also, a huge thank you to anyone else who has previously opened up to tell their story. The only reason I have gotten to this point is because of you."

"Holy sh*t that feels good, I’m stoked."

Congrats on living your truth, Corey! Welcome to the family!